The present application relates generally to an improved data processing apparatus and method and more specifically to mechanisms for providing caller identify verification based on unique multi-device signatures.
Unwanted solicitation calls, such as from call centers, automated telephone systems, telemarketers, and the like, whether legitimate or illegitimate, are a major nuisance in modern society. Such solicitation calls may be legitimately from a person, company, or other organization attempting to sell products or services to the called person, solicit information from the called person, such as in the case of voter polling, opinion polls, and the like. Other solicitation calls may be from individuals attempting to use nefarious means to access the called person so that they will relinquish private information, provide access to accounts, simply determine whether the person is present in the home, or any of a number of other reasons.
Whether legitimate or illegitimate, many times recipients of telephone calls are not interested in speaking with the caller. Often, called parties utilize caller-ID services to give them an indication of the source of a telephone call in an effort to screen calls from parties that the called party is not interested in speaking with. If an incoming call is from an unwanted party, then the called party need not answer the telephone. Some mechanisms allow for automated blocking of telephone calls from parties added to a blacklist where the determination may also be based on caller-ID mechanisms.
One tell-tale indicator of a call being originated from an unwanted source is the call originating from a non-local telephone number, toll free number, or the like. Other indicators may include the caller-ID information indicating a caller unknown or caller-ID blocked name.
Recently, unscrupulous entities involved in telemarketing and other types of solicitation calls use caller-ID spoofing to portray themselves as a source of the telephone call that is false. For example, caller-ID spoofing may be used to cause caller-ID mechanisms to show a local phone number, and even phone numbers with which the called party is familiar with, e.g., friends, family, and the like, to fool called parties into accepting the telephone calls. For example, there have been reports that robocall mechanisms may make millions of calls spoofing local telephone numbers in a relatively short period of time in order to trick called parties into buying goods or services.